When I was talking to a friend’s husband months ago, he asked me what mobileStorm did. I told him, “We provide technology that helps companies send out marketing messages.” He said, “Oh, like spam and telemarketing calls?” and proceeded to go off on one such annoying call he’d recently received. It took a while before he registered my cries of, “Permission-based! Permission-based!”

It’s because of such worriers like him that pressure to regulate consumer privacy is high, especially considering the growth of behaviorally-targeted Internet ads, social network use by minors, and the now-common use of SMS. But the Interactive Advertising Bureau is keen to prove to U.S. lawmakers that self-regulation among legitimate marketers is a much better way to combat abuse than would be the passage of increasingly more laws. The IAB is currently wondering how—and if—it should enforce best practices among all marketers.

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I’m writing this from the sky as I fly over the Atlantic Ocean, on my way back from Heidelberg, Germany where I attended a MAAWG conference. I always enjoy going to MAAWG, not only because of the vast amount of socializing and networking that goes on, but also because of the high level of knowledge and expertise there. For example, I attended a panel discussion that included the managers of the postmaster teams for both AOL and Hotmail. These people are the ones who make the decisions on how email is delivered, and whether it is bulked or blocked. From my standpoint as the one in charge of ensuring good delivery for mobileStorm, the value for attending these conferences is clear.

Overall, from the panel discussions to the hallway discussions, some fundamental truths were again reconfirmed to me. These aren’t new concepts, and have been discussed at length in the past, but I will reiterate as they are becoming increasingly important.

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I took a little break from blogging, and am now back in the saddle again. However, rather than getting to hear me preach about deliverability every week, I am going to share my slot with my esteemed colleagues Jared Reitzin and Shaneli Ramratan. So enjoy the new schedule!

The FTC recently approved some slight modifications to the CAN-SPAM act. While these changes will not dramatically impact the way we send email, they are worth noting, as they do affect the way some mailers manage their unsubscribe process, among other things.

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Yesterday, a federal grand jury indicted a woman who allegedly caused the death of teenager Megan Meier by harassing her on MySpace. Now, I want to make clear that the girl’s death is no frivolous matter, and that I myself was horrified when I first heard the allegations. However I do think that marketers need to take note of the case because it indicates a trend of legal action against those—including illegitimate marketers—who abuse MySpace.

Lori Drew is being charged by federal officials in Los Angeles because there are federal laws that apply to the situation. Prosecutors in Missouri, where the alleged crimes happened, have said no state laws there are applicable to the case. Among the allegations is that Ms. Drew violated MySpace’s terms of service by creating a false account and using it to send false messages.

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